Cyber Attacks Are Now More Prevalent Than the Flu

In the U.S., you’re more likely to experience a cyber
attack or data breach than the flu

Did you know that your business is more likely to experience
a data breach or cyber attack than you are
to get the flu? According to WebMD, nine
to 30 million people (2.75-9.17% of the United States’ population of 327
million) get the flu each year. Compare this to:

67% of businesses report being victims of cyber attacks
and 58% report experiencing data breaches over the past 12 months.

We’re not suggesting that this means you should ignore your
doctor’s recommendation of getting a flu shot this year. However, you should
also be concerned about virtual threats that could affect the health of your
business. Let’s take a closer look at the risks, costs, and concerns associated
with cyber security attacks and data breaches a little more in depth.

Let’s hash it out.

U.S. to Become the Biggest Target of Cyber Attacks by 2023

We really shouldn’t be surprised by this kind of information
considering that U.S. small businesses are often the targets of many data
breaches each year (43%, according to SCORE).
In fact, Juniper Research anticipates that U.S. organizations and businesses of
all sizes will be the targets of 55%
of all cyber attacks each year by 2023.

“A majority of IT professionals have experienced at least one data breach during their careers—61% at their current company and 48% at a previous company. On average, they have dealt with six breaches over the course of their professional lives.”

Cost of Cyber Security Incidents and Data Breaches

According to a recent report
from Cybersecurity Ventures and the Herjavec Group, “cybercrime will cost the
world in excess of $6 trillion annually by 2021.” The costs of cyber attacks on
individual businesses, according to an Accenture
study, average $13 million per year. This amount can easily surpass the
budgets of small to midsize businesses (SMBs) and force them to close their
doors. This is particularly the case of businesses that neglect to invest in cyber security liability
insurance.

If that in and of itself isn’t enough to make you reach for
an antacid, this may do so: The costs of cyber security breaches extend beyond
strictly financial concerns — particularly for those whose data breaches result
in the exposure of customers’ personal information. This type of information
has a virtually evergreen lifespan. Unlike credit card numbers and employee
login information, which need to be used or sold immediately to have value
before someone has time to change their account information, personally
identifiable information (PII) is a long-term play for cyber thieves. This
means that the lingering effects of a data breach may still be felt by your
customers (and your brand image) several years after the initial incident took
place.

According to Frank Abagnale, a former con man who became a
consultant for the FBI, during an interview for Cybercrime
Magazine:

“People who steal mass data warehouse that data typically for three to four years. So, if I break into a Target or a Home Depot and steal credit cards and debit cards, I need to get rid of that immediately. It has a very short shelf life. But if I steal your name, your social security number, your date of birth — you can’t change your name, you can’t change your social security number, you can’t change your date of birth. So, obviously, the longer I hold it, the more valuable it becomes.”

What You Can Do to Protect the “Health” of Your Company and Safety of Customer Data

The CDC recommends that everyone six months of age or older
get a flu vaccination each year (with the exception of those who have specific
allergies or medical conditions). They also recommend eating healthy, drinking
lots of water, and getting plenty of sleep to help keep your immune system in peak
condition. This same concept applies to your cyber security defenses and how
they help protect the overall well-being of your business.

Much like getting a flu shot, there are things
you can do to help toughen your cyber defenses and increase your cyber
resilience. Large and small businesses alike can regularly check the
“temperature” of your cyber security initiatives through a variety of methods,
including:

Regularly monitoring your traffic, access, and
server logs;

Regularly updating and patching your software
and hardware assets;

Managing digital security certificates and keys;
and

Assessing and testing your systems and employee
knowledge through regular training and testing.

Ultimately, the goal is to minimize the risks to your
business and customers from experiencing a cyber security attack or breach and
to aid in speeding up your business’s recovery after a breach.

Parting Thoughts

Much like keeping your employees healthy should be a major
priority, keeping your company’s sensitive data and customer information secure
should also always be a top concern for every business. All it takes is one
employee opening a phishing email or clicking on the wrong link to land your
company in hot water. Without adequate protections and response plans in place,
once a hacker gains access to one system, their access spreads like a virus
through the others and may cause irreparable damage.

Ask yourself: Are you taking every precaution to ensure your
business stays healthy in 2019?

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Author

Casey Crane is a regular contributor to HashedOut, with 10+ years of experience in journalism and writing, including crime analysis and IT security. She also serves as Content Marketer for The SSL Store.